Christopher Hampson: Deep Roots, Many Branches

Unassuming audience members were in for a shock when 12 male dancers from Scottish Ballet performed Angelin Preljocaj's MC 14/22 (Ceci est mon corps) at the 2016 Edinburgh International Festival. The work explores virility and violence through a series of biblical allusions. Striking in its harshness and punishing physicality, it at times seemed almost cruel to inflict upon the dancers, who performed with a vicious beauty. But artistic director Christopher Hampson chose the contemporary piece for its thought-provoking, emotional impact. As the Scottish Ballet's repertoire keeps growing, Hampson continues to challenge the typical notions of ballet.

He established himself as a dancer and then as a choreographer for the English National Ballet, subsequently choreographing for Royal New Zealand Ballet, Atlanta Ballet and The Royal Ballet. In 2012, the Manchester native became the artistic director of Scotland's national dance company, in Glasgow, and incorporated the position of chief executive director in 2015.

Hampson's five-year plan focused on expanding the ballet's repertoire. The previous artistic director, Ashley Page, had developed a strong rep but one that centered primarily on neoclassical ballet. Hampson knew that he'd have to begin pushing boundaries. “I wanted to make sure that we were working with the best creative voices so that our repertoire was growing in real time and not relying on buying lots of productions," says Hampson. He's introduced works by a range of dancemakers, like Crystal Pite, David Dawson, Christopher Bruce, Glen Tetley and Sir Kenneth MacMillan, as well as his own choreography for Hansel & Gretel and The Rite of Spring.

He confides that it took time for the company to fully trust him—something Hampson understood and respected. During his first year he added two test pieces: Hans van Manen's spirited, sharp Five Tangos, and Highland Fling, an offbeat version of La Sylphide by Matthew Bourne, who's made a career of reimagining the classics. With that, Scottish Ballet became the first company outside of Bourne's New Adventures to perform his work. “The deal was that he was able to work with us how he would work with his company. So he didn't have to fit into our mold, we fit into his," says Hampson. “Now I expect that of the company with every choreographer we work with."

In order to take on the broad repertoire, Hampson's dancers must have a high proficiency in classical ballet. “I look at dance as a language. Once you can speak classically, then you can speak other languages. That's the backdrop of the company; the clue's in the title."

Bethany Kingsley-Garner, a nine-year company member who was named principal last year, credits Hampson with bolstering the dancers' classical technique. “We're working a lot more technically, and everyone has boosted each other in that respect," she says. “The first year that Chris was with us, he watched how we moved and looked for our strong points rather than just throwing us in the deep end of something he wanted to do."

Hampson insists that his dancers be curious and fully in charge of their own careers: “I want them to contribute creativity. It's at the heart of everything we do." Kingsley-Garner adds personality and individuality to the list of Scottish Ballet dancer must-haves. “Chris would never want anyone to be a clone," she says.

The size of the company (36 dancers) and its rigorous mix of national and international touring (11 cities this year) contribute to its close-knit nature. “With that amount of people, there are opportunities for all," says Hampson. “I am very clear that if a choreographer comes in and wants to work with a first-year artist in a principal role and vice versa, that's what we're doing. There's no 'I'm a principal, I don't do that.' "

Scottish Ballet tours the U.S. every other year. This April, it will perform a triple bill in New York City, and Highland Fling in Minneapolis. In May, audiences in Berkeley and Los Angeles will be treated to Annabelle Lopez Ochoa's A Streetcar Named Desire, the 2012 award-winning production that boosted the company's international appeal.

Also in April, the Scottish Ballet will unveil Under the Skin, a monthlong online season. The performance series will present ballet projects solely intended for the digital format.

As the company spreads its technological wings, Hampson asks his dancers to look toward the future. He began the Dancers Education Group to train new teaching artists and encourages company members to continue their studies in fields outside of dance. “My generation had directors that said that if you are not dancing every minute of every day, you are not committed," says Hampson. “Now I know that when you've been away and had your head in a different space, you come back to the studio so much more motivated."

at a glance

Scottish Ballet

Number of dancers: 36

Length of contract: Varies on a dancer-to-dancer basis

Starting salary: Inquire with company

Performances per year: 80–135

Website: scottishballet.co.uk

Audition Advice

“Dancers need to be open and adaptable, have very strong classical technique, curiosity about movement and a sense of autonomy," says Hampson of those aspiring to join the Scottish Ballet. The company does not hold open calls, but interested dancers can request to audition via company class.

What's going on in ballet this week? We've pulled together some highlights.

The Bolshoi Premiere of John Neumeier's Anna Karenina

Last July Hamburg Ballet presented the world premiere of John Neumeier's Anna Karenina, a modern adaptation on Leo Tolstoy's famous novel. Hamburg Ballet coproduced the full-length ballet with the National Ballet of Canada and the Bolshoi, the latter of which will premiere the work March 23 (NBoC will have its premiere in November). The production will feature Bolshoi star Svetlana Zakharova in the title role. This is especially fitting as Neumeier's initial inspiration for the ballet came from Zakharova while they were working together on his Lady of the Camellias. The following video delves into what makes this production stand out.

In one of 60 spacious dance studios at the Beijing Dance Academy, Pei Yu Meng practices a tricky step from Jorma Elo's Over Glow. She's standing among other students, but they all work alone, with the help of teachers calling out corrections from the front of the room. On top of her strong classical foundation and clean balletic lines, Pei Yu's slithery coordination and laser-sharp focus give her dancing a polished gleam. Once she's mastered the pirouette she's been struggling with, she repeats the step over and over until the clock reaches 12 pm for lunch. Here, every moment is a chance to approach perfection.

Pei Yu came to the school at age 10 from Hebei, a province near Beijing. Now 20, and in her third year of BDA's professional program, she is an example of a new kind of Chinese ballet student. Founded in 1954 by the country's communist government, BDA is a fully state-funded professional training school with close to 3,000 students and 275 full-time teachers over four departments (ballet, classical Chinese dance, social dance and musical theater). It offers degrees in performance, choreography and more. BDA's ballet program has long been known for fostering pristine Russian-style talent. But since 2011, the school has made major efforts to broaden ballet students' knowledge of Chinese dance traditions and the works of Western contemporary ballet choreographers. Pointe went inside this prestigious academy to see how BDA trains its dancers.

Dutch National Ballet Soloist Michaela DePrince has been busy winning over the mainstream media. Since last spring, the First Position star not only landed a spokesmodel deal with Jockey, but she also recently teamed up on a commercial with Chase Bankand just announced that Madonna will be directing her upcoming biopic,Taking Flight (totally casual).

What could possibly be next? The cover of April's Harper's Bazaar Netherlands, it turns out. Posing in an arabesque with her hair slicked back in her usual ballet bun, DePrince traded in her leotard and tights for a stunning metallic Gucci dress (can we do that, too?).

Dancing with The Royal Ballet from 1992 until 2013, former principal Leanne Benjamin tackled just about every role in the classical gamut, from Juliet to Nikiya to Giselle. As the young and spirited Swanilda in this clip from Coppélia, Benjamin reveals that she has equal talent for the silly as the serious. Her comedic performance in Swanilda's doll dance is this role at its best.

In an effort to trick the scheming Dr. Coppelius and save her beloved Franz, Swanilda pretends she is the doll Coppélia come to life. As she begins to dance, Benjamin is stiff and mechanical one moment and then flopped over like a rag doll the next. Dr. Coppelius, played by character artist Luke Heydon, watches her enthralled and Benjamin's gaze is fixed in a plastic stare. But when the toymaker looks away, Benjamin's Swanilda breaks doll character and frantically tries to figure out an escape. Feebly, Dr. Coppelius tries to keep up with her. Although we feel some sympathy for the delusional old toymaker, we can't help laughing at Swanilda's antics. And that slap at 1:55? Gets us every time. Happy #ThrowbackThursday!

Deep in the basement of Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater is a small, windowless space that's home to nearly 6,000 pairs of pointe shoes, neatly stacked on shelves that reach to the ceiling. It's New York City Ballet's shoe room, and for company members, it's one of the most important places in the world. Dancers frequently stop by to search for the ideal pair for a special performance, or to tweak their custom pointe shoe orders, trying to get that elusive perfect fit. "If the shoe isn't right, the dancer can't do her job," says shoe room supervisor and former Pacific Northwest Ballet principal Linnette Roe. We talked to Roe and NYCB soloist Emilie Gerrity about some of the most interesting—and surprising—secrets of the shoe room.

The NYCB dancers go through 9,000 to 11,000 pairs of shoes each year, including flat shoes, sneakers, jazz shoes, and character shoes. The company has an annual shoe budget of about $780,000.

Younji-Grace Choi at the 2014 USA IBC. Choi is now a dancer with Cincinnati Ballet and will return to the USA IBC as a senior competitor this summer. Photo by Richard Finkelstein, Courtesy USA IBC.

Exciting news today: the USA International Ballet Competition has just announced its list of invited competitors for the summer 2018 competition. TheUSA IBC has invited 119 dancers from 19 countries out of over 300 applicants to compete in Jackson, MS June 10-23.

Since the last USA IBC in 2014 the competition has expanded its age limits; the junior category now allows dancers ages 14-18 and the senior category dancers ages 19-28. Of the 119 competitors this year, 53 are juniors and 66 are seniors. The United States has the highest number of competitors invited (52), followed by Japan (23) and South Korea (14). The other countries represented are Armenia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Columbia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Mexico, Mongolia, Peru, Philippines, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

The latest front in the controversy over the underrepresentation of female choreographers in ballet is at Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal. They're facing a petition and choreographer resignation that forced them to rebrand a season and publicly defend their programming.

On February 26, artistic director Ivan Cavallari, who started the job in the summer of 2017, announced the 2018-2019 season, which included a program titled Femmes. The program announcement said the evening would have "woman as its theme," and that Cavallari had "chosen three distinctive voices, rising stars of choreography, to undertake this great subject."

The three voices Cavallari chose to create on the theme of women, however, were all men.

"This was just too much for me, it was the last straw," says Kathleen Rea, a former member of National Ballet of Canada who now freelances, choreographs and teaches in Toronto. Rea says she's been bothered by the dearth of women choreographers throughout her career. But referring to women as "subjects" and excluding them from choreographing on a program about them compelled her to take action.